Phillips Idowu, the world triple jump silver medallist and one of Britain’s
big Olympic hopes this summer, has given cause for concern after landing
awkwardly on his third-round leap at the Diamond League meeting in Eugene,
Oregon, on Friday night.

Triple whammy: Olympic triple-jump Phillips Idowu landed awkwardly during a meeting in Oregon, raising concerns over his fitness and preparation for London 2012Photo: EPA

Idowu, 33, was unable to take any further part in the competition, which was won with a jump of 17.62 metres by Christian Taylor – the American who took his title at last summer’s World Championships in Daegu.

The Briton had earlier been struggling to hit top form in the drizzly conditions with leaps of 16.43m and 17.05m and injured himself when he fouled with his third attempt.

The nature and seriousness of the injury is not yet known, though its timing less than two months before the start of the Olympics will be a worry. Idowu is due to compete at the Bislett Games in Oslo on Thursday.

The Belgrave Harrier had previously been unbeaten this year with winning leaps of 17.24m and 17.31m in Shanghai and Hengelo, Holland.

Taylor could manage only third in the heavy rain of Shanghai but his Eugene performance puts him top of this year’s outdoor world list. Fellow American Will Claye, who won world bronze last year, was second with a jump of 17.48m.

The task facing Britain’s Mo Farah in the 10,000 metres at the Olympics is becoming clearer after the Eugene meeting played hosted to the official Kenyan trials for the event.

With places available in London for the first three athletes across the finish line, victory went to the Wilson Kiprop, the 2010 World half-marathon champion, who took nearly 25 seconds off his personal best to win in a world-leading time of 27min 1.98sec. He will be joined in London by Moses Ndiema Masai and Bitan Karoki.

However, there will be no repeat in London of Farah’s epic final-lap duel at last summer’s World Championship with Ethiopian Ibrahim Jeilan, who caught Farah in the final strides to take 10,000m gold. It has been confirmed that Jeilan is injured and has no chance of making the Ethiopian team.

World indoor triple jump champion Yamile Aldama has received some welcome medical news after the shoulder injury she sustained on Thursday at the Rome Golden Gala was diagnosed as nothing more than a stretched tendon.

The 39 year-old was hurt when she landed awkwardly on her second-round jump of 14.65m – her longest leap outdoors for six years.

There were initial concerns that the Cuban-born athlete might have broken her collarbone but a scan in London on Friday revealed no serious damage. The injury is expected to take a week to heal, leaving her plenty of time to prepare for the Aviva Olympic trials in Birmingham on June 22-24.

Meanwhile, Usain Bolt has stoked up his rivalry with former world and Olympic champion Justin Gatlin by revealing that the American spat in his lane before they clashed in a 100 metres race last year.

In an interview with Linford Christie for the news channel CNN, Gatlin said the incident took place before their encounter in Zagreb last September. Bolt went on to triumph in 9.85sec while Gatlin, who returned from a four-year drugs ban in 2010, was sixth in 10.17sec.

"We were walking back and forward and he actually spat across my lane,” said Bolt. “And when he did it, I knew he was trying to intimidate me and I found it really funny.”

Last week, Bolt turned up the heat on Gatlin when he laughed off suggestions by the American that people were getting bored with the ‘Usain Bolt show’ and it was now his time to step into the mix.

Bolt said: "I don't want to sound rude but I think Gatlin's had his chance. He's been on top, but to say 'get ready for the Gatlin show' is funny."